WWBB

Infobox Radio Station
name = Big Hits, B101!
city = Providence, Rhode Island
area = Providence, Rhode Island
branding = "Big Hits B101"
slogan = "Big hits of the '60s and '70s"
"B101, be 1 with the music"
airdate =
frequency = 101.5 (MHz) HD Radio
101.5 HD-2 for Comedy
format = Classic Hits
erp = 13,500 watts
haat = 290 meters
class = B
facility_id = 54568
owner = Clear Channel Communications
webcast = [http://www.b101.com/cc-common/streaming_new/ Listen Live]
website = http://www.b101.com
callsign_meaning = "We Want Baby Boomers"

WWBB-FM (101.5 FM, "B101" or "Big Hits B101") is a radio station in Providence, Rhode Island. The station mainly plays classic hits and oldies from the 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s. The station is also carried as background music on several local access channels in southeastern Massachusetts. B101's offices and studios are located on the 3rd and 4th floors respectively of the Roland Building adjacent to Interstate 95 in the city of Providence.

Personalities

Notable current WWBB on-air talent includes TC (Tom Campbell) & Friends on mornings, Ed McMann (voicetracked from out of town) on afternoons, and Scott Brennan and Dave Newfell (live and voicetracked) on evenings and Saturday mornings. Weekend talent includes Scott Murphy, Scott Gibbons, Dave Newfell, and Mark Ambrose.

Notable former WWBB air talent includes Ray Anthony, Jed Barton, Big John Bina, Robby Bridges, Daria Bruno, Kenny Cool, Melissa Culross, Austin Davis, Bob Kay, Amy Hagan, Tiffany Hill, Michele Hughes, Larry "Ice Cold" Kruger, Roger Letendre, Rick Lyle, Bobby Michaels, Rebecca Morse-Whitten, Rockin' Rob Mullin, Mike O'Reilly, Cruisin' Bruce Palmer, Paul Perry, Keri Rodrigues, Jeff Ryan, Randy Saxx, Dr. Don Spencer, Norm Thibeault, and Steve Valentine.

History

WWBB hit the air in 1989 with an Oldies format, which was very popular across the nation at that time. Prior to that, the station was known as WLKW-FM and aired a Beautiful Music format. As the 21st century dawned, B101 started to see changes in its playlist. Music from the 1950s was phased out until, around 2003, it was almost gone completely. More music from the 1970s began to appear, and the slogan changed from "Good Times And Great Oldies" to "Big Hits Of The 60s And 70s". It was around this time, that former program director Bill Hess repositioned the station as "Big Hits, B101", a moniker which still exists today. In the last year or so, music from the 1980s began to be aired. Over the years, the number of songs in rotation has shrunk from approximately 1,500 down to 300.

Controversy

In October 2004, two on-air veterans, Cruisin' Bruce Palmer and Big John Bina, were told that after 25 years of combined tenure their services were no longer needed. Station management said that they wanted to "go in another direction;" however, it is widely accepted that this was just a cost cutting move. Fact|date=July 2008 Clear Channel Communications, the owner of over a thousand radio stations including B101, is notorious for dismissing highly paid air talent in an attempt to save money. Fact|date=July 2008

Prior to Bina and Palmer's dismissal, Roger Letendre, Dr. Don Spencer, and Randy Saxx were other full timers who were shown the door in 2000. Scott Murphy was let go a year or so later, again believed to be a cost cutting measure, Fact|date=July 2008 but he opted to remain part-time.

WBEB listener confusion

In the last 10 years, many B101 DJs have gotten calls on the listener lines from people trying to reach WBEB in Philadelphia, also positioned as "B101" (but located at 101.1 FM). The confusion lies in the fact that the "b101.com" website is owned by WWBB and Clear Channel, not WBEB. WBEB listeners sometimes log on to "b101.com", assume they are on the correct website, find the phone number, and end up calling WWBB. Both stations also used a bumblebee logo, which could add to the confusion (WWBB dropped the bumblebee from their logo a few years back). Jerry Lee, the owner of WBEB, has made offers to Clear Channel for the "b101.com" domain name. All offers have been rejected. Thus, WBEB uses "b101radio.com". Coincidentally, WBEB's current morning show co-host, Tiffany Hill, was also once the morning co-host at WWBB.

External links

* [http://www.b101.com/ B101 WWBB official website]
*FMQ|WWBB
*FML|WWBB
*FMARB|WWBB